Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Sorry Phil ! But now you get top and solo billing. Phil Prather of Kennewick has brought out his 1929 Model A Ford sports coupe. The fully restored Ford sports a kewanee green body with black fenders, and is running on its original four-cylinder engine with three-speed transmission. The sport coupe was built to look like a convertible, but the top does not come down. Two can ride in front, but other passengers had to take the rumble seat in the rear. Rumble seats were located over the rear wheels, which tended to give passenges a bumpy ride. Henry Ford's sports coupe sold in 1929 for $530.

There, is everyone happy?

Check out the slideshow above for all of the pictures of preparation and parade.

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Here are the rest of the pictures.Here's another familiar set of classic wheels. This 1950 Plymouth four-door sedan has been seen around the Tri-Cities for half a century. Known as Fanne -- notice the license plate -- the Plymouth is being driven by Red Rutherford of Kennewick. It is all original, including the green paint, and is destined to be one of the vehicles to be placed in the Three Rivers Transportation Expo Museum. The six-cylinder deluxe sedan spend a lot of years parked in a garage in Finley before Jim Mokler bought it with plans to preserve the car in driving condition. Mokler's widow donated the car two years ago to the museum. Price when new $1,566. Get out of the way of this 1935 Auburn boat-tail speedster. Not original, but very close to the real thing, Pete Jackson, with his wife Grace, is driving a Glen Prey fiberglass reproduction of that amazing classic. Built as one of 81 repros in the 1960s, this beautiful white driving machine rides on a Lincoln driveline, powered by a 460 cubic-inch engine with automatic transmission. Burgundy interior gives the luxury car a nice accent. And just like the original model, the two-seater has that distinctive boat-tail and those hot-hot-hot external pipes. Mr. Prey was a stickler for details, and for good reason. He bought out all the Auburn Motor Car new-old-stock parts to use for his projects. The original cost of an Auburn boat-tail in 1935 was $2,245. Mr. Prey sold his creations in the 1960s for $7,000. The name Packard stood tall in American motoring. Its motto was "Ask the Man Who Owns One." But the driver of this 1932 coupe roadster, Dennis Jackson, with his wife Karla, will tell you this beautifully restored chariot speaks well enough for itself. It has a rich beige and maroon paint, burgundy leather interior and that unmistakable Packard profile atop its front grill and hood. The power train is a straight 8 coupled to a 3-speed transmission. This Packard came from the factory equipped with dual sidemounts, a rumble seat and a place to stow golf clubs for a circuit around the links on the way home from the office. The golf club compartment can be seen just behind the passenger side door. Packard also gave this car a special comfort feature -- the shock absorbers can be adjusted from inside the car while driving. All this and more in 1932 if you had the $1,940 to buy it off the showroom floor. You wouldn't have wanted a ride in this 1924 Dodge Brothers commercial car when it was new. It was originally purchased by the city of Pasco for a truant officer. Owner/driver John Nelson of Richland is the fifth owner of the screenside, which sits on a three-quarter ton Dodge chassis and has a body built by Graham Brothers. The Dodge has all its original equipment, including a 212-cubic inch four-cylinder engine that boasts up to 37 actual horsepower. This screenside has survived with virtually all its original equipment and details, including a factory-installed plaque on the dash that reads: "Overloading or overspeeding will void your warrantee --speed 25 miles per hour. But today's improved roads allow Mr. Nelson to cruise 40 mph or better. Here's a true American classic. This 1934 Cadillac 4-door convertible is being driven by its owner, Jack Yale of Kennewick. The battleship gray body with black fenders is completely original in its restoration. It has red leather interior, suicide doors, a fully convertible 3-position top and divider window to provide privacy for the rear compartment. Jack acquired the Cadillac, which rides on an exceptionally long 148-inch wheelbase earlier this year, knowing it was one of only five built in this body style. It came to him with just 21 post-restoration miles. The big, beautiful Caddy bears serial number 2. It is top of its class as a show car, having won first place in the senior division in both the American Auto Association and the Classic Car Club of America. It's original price, at the depth of the Great Depression, was $8,060.

I Just found out that I left one out, guess I will have to come back tomorrow,Phil.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Here are the pictures of the cars and the commentary during the Downtown Kennewick Show and Shine. Walter P. Chrysler built this 1931 CD-8 roadster when American motor cars were approaching the peak of artistic design. The white and red convertible has maroon upholstery and dual sidemounts, which were standard. A straight-8 engine powers the car easily, and a 4-speed transmission gives the driver enough options to take advantage of the roadster's road-handling features and those 110 horses under that long hood. One of Chrysler's claims to fame is that he introduced hydraulic brakes to the motoring world. The driver, John Trumbo of Kennewick, could have owned one of these new in 1931 for a mere $1,535. Jim Vetrano of Kennewick is driving his gleaming 1931 Studebaker Commander 8 that has spent its entire existence in the Tri-Cities. This luxury sedan was top of the line for Studebaker when it was purchased originally at a Pasco dealership. Vetrano found the sedan intact, but with a broken engine, where it was stored in a barn for 40 years. He did a total mechanical restoration, but was able to retain the original upholstery. It's green and black paint is a correct color scheme for a Studebaker of that vintage. Dual sidemounts give the old Stude a commanding stance. Studebaker engines, which had nine -- count them -- NINE main bearings, were known for having gutsy power. They could pull the heavy car from less than 10 miles per hour to 70, in third gear. Climbing hills was no problem, but coming down was something else. Those 4,000-pound Studebaker sedans had mechanical brakes! The Commander sold in 1931 for $1,850. Elegance overstated embodies this rare 1932 Chrysler Imperial 4-door convertible, with chauffeur Dave Stands of Kennewick at the controls. The massive straight-8 uses 384 cubic inches to generate 150 horsepower, and the wheelbase is the largest ever built by Chrysler. It is 11 feet from the front bumper to the driver's seat. Produced as 1 of only 18 such models, this fabulous vehicle was purchased new by MGM movie studios to transport movie stars to and from the locations for shooting pictures in the West. The likes of Roy and Dale Rogers and Tom Mix could have been celebrities who enjoyed the luxury of this Chrysler. The emerald blue body with tan top and interior is the epitome of opulence on wheels. Cost when new, only $3,195. This 1935 Auburn cabriolet, driven by Ed Edwards, is a sleeping beauty. Its black cherry body and burgundy leather interior are accented with silver trim. A Lycoming straight-8 engine and manual 3-speed transmission provide the motive power, while a rare 2-speed rear axle gives the Auburn extra ummpf when needed. The builder guaranteed the cabriolet would do 100 mph, and it still can 73 years later. The owner found this rare classic in a museum in South Bend, Ind., not far from where it was built by the Auburn Motor Car Company in Auburn, Ind. And here's a tidbit: the Auburn Motor Car Company also manufactured two other American classics -- the Cord and the Duesenburg, better known as a Duzy. This car was modestly priced in 1935 at $1,361. Here's a rare name from highways of the past. This 1940 LaSalle convertible coupe was the last of the line. They did not return after car makers resumed production following World War II. A black cherry exterior, tan top and tan interior give the LaSalle a classy look, while its flathead V-8 delivers 120 horsepower to a 3-speed column shift tranny. The decade of the 1930s brought changes for automobile design, as seen in this LaSalle. The rumble seat went away to be replaced by a exceptionally large trunk space. But this 2-door convertible does have a back seat, which is tucked behind the two folding front seats. The original price of this pre-war classic, which is driven by Fred Fraser, was $1,535.

That's all for today. I'll post the rest in the next couple days, include a slide show of all the pictures of the preparations and the parade.

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Have you ever been just sitting around thinking about the very important things like, Oh I don't know , things like how thankful you are that there "euphoniums" in the world? Then you are struck by the realization that you have no clue what the HECK a euphonium is.

Could this be a Euphonium? ...... No! ......But he could tell you a lot about one.

This is a Euphonium and our own Joe Kuhns plays one in the Columbia Basin Concert Band.Ask him about it, I'm sure he will tell all about it, and also about all the FREE concerts they preform.

Nov 2009 Garage tour

Bickleton pictures

More pictures from The manor at Canyon Lakes

More pictures from Grandview car show

About Us

Nearly 40 years ago
Ye Olde Car Club was started by Cork Simmelink, Bob Graves, Jerry Durham, and Jim Stafford of TriCities, along with Gil Linden, Dale Henson, and Russ Duffield from the Yakima area. Each of these men shared a passion for antique automobiles and the mutual desire to own, restore, maintain and drive these splendid old machines.
There little group
grew quickly as the number of members doubled, and then doubled again. Today the membership in the club includes over one hundred individuals and families. These members bring with them hundreds of classic cars of all vintages.
Surely, the founders
of the club never expected their creation to attract so much attention. More significant, they could never foreseen the special role the club would to play as the members passed on an appreciation of the history of automotive technology to the next generation, and watched more and more youngsters recognize the importance of preserving these wonderful old relics.
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